This book has all the lively and humorous features of all the other Babar the Elephant tales, the brightly colored, warm, and friendly drawings of our beloved elephant royalty, the antics and escapades of the elephants themselves, and, of course, our hero, King Babar once again, saving the day, in this book, a most important day, Christmas!

Arthur, Pom, Flora, Alexander, the royal elephant children, and their monkey pal, Zephir, write Father Christmas a wish list letter and are saddened when he doesn't reply; this ultimately leads to Babar's realization that the Elephants' Country needs to be on included on his regular route, so he goes to valiant lengths to make his childrens' wishes come true. Babar and Father Christmas become fast friends, and Father Christmas even takes a much-needed rest in the tropical climate of Babar's country. The way de Brunhoff has drawn Father Christmas is quirky and fun and a bit different from the image we have of him today, but it entirely captures the essence of this beautiful holiday icon. If you have loved other Babar stories, you will surely love it as I did. If this is your first meeting with Babar, it stands alone well. ( )

When Babar learns about Father Christmas he leaves to find him and invite him to visit the children of the Kingdom of the Elephants. He shows persistence and resourcefulness in his search which is rewarding for him and Father Christmas - and a good life for a little dog too. ( )

The usual charming story about Babar, King of the Elephant Country, who is searching for Father Christmas to invite him to visit the Elephant children, as he has never done so before.
Some wording may be problematic these days, and Babar smokes.

You will have to read this aloud even to older kids, because no one learns cursive writing anymore.

The print in this miniature is also very small, and was difficult for my old eyes.

(Dates for most recent reading.) ( )

Like the others. Deadpan, strange, kind of violent, wonderful illustrations. ( )

As the last story in the series of Babar Books, Jean De Brunhoff tells the story of Babar traveling to find Father Christmas on behalf of the children in the Elephant’s country. Babar searches far and wide to find Father Christmas so that the children in Elephant’s country can receive Christmas presents from the saint too. This charming edition to the Babar series tells the story through large blocks of narration and a series of colored, drawn illustrations. The text is translated from the original french and requires a high reading level for independent reading. However, it is well suited for a one-on-one read aloud with a younger child or a story time read aloud with older students. The illustrations are indicative of the Babar series and stand alone from textual narrative. The images mostly depict the isolated events that take place on each page through focal illustrations. There are occasional scenic illustrations incorporated into the story as well. Interestingly, this story was the last story written by Jean De Brunhoff before his sudden death and his brother Michel directed the coloring of this book as well as His Children. This book is recommended for purchase as a Christmas themed concept book in a public or school library. (Ages 3-10) ( )